Random MedaShorts
by Midnight Chrysanthemum
Summary: Random omake scenes starring different members of the Medabots cast. Just short stories that didn't justify making an entirely new entry, mostly.
1. Hedged

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A Random Meda-Short. Usual disclaimers apply.

Main Characters: Samantha, Spyke, Sloan and Erika

Pairings Warning: Possibly mild hints of Ikki/Karin

~ * Hedged * ~

It was a perfectly normal-seeming afternoon for the Screws as they walked along and tried to figure out what to do for the rest of the weekend. At least, until Spyke noticed the pair of legs that were jutting out of a bush. He stopped short and stared at the limbs, then at the rear end they were attached to, hot pink pants standing out clearly against the fresh green leaves.

"Gee, Boss, I've never seen that kind of flower before," he commented.

"That's not a flower, baka," groaned Samantha, whapping Spyke on the back of the head absently.

"Samantha? Spyke? Is that you?" a very familiar voice piped from the bush.

"Huh?"

The Screws peered around the bush and saw Erika there – or at least, another part of her. The junior reporter's head and one of her arms was sticking out of the other side of the hedge, while the rest remained buried in the dense shrubbery. Her precious camera was sitting on the ground nearby, just out of reach of her one free hand. Several twigs were tangled in her messy brown hair, and her face was not only a bit scratched up, it was also a light shade of scarlet.

"You don't know how good it is to see you!" she exclaimed. "(Though I wish you didn't get to see me like this…)"

"Erika?!" the leader of the Screws said in disbelief. "What the heck happened to you?"

Erika's embarrassed blush intensified.

"I kinda saw Ikki with Karin, so I decided to follow them and see what they were doing. I figured it might turn out to be a lead to another great story."

"You mean you were jealous and spied on them," Samantha corrected.

"Hey, there's a huge difference! …Anyway, I was trailing them, when Ikki turned around real fast. I didn't want him to see me just yet, so I dove into the bushes and… well…"

"Got stuck?"

"Yep." Erika smiled nervously.

Spyke looked confused. "They left you here? I can understand Ikki doing that, but Karin…"

"She was the one who told Ikki to leave." Erika grimaced. "She said it would 'teach me to respect the privacy of others' or something stupid like that. And Ikki actually listened to that little hussy…!"

"What about Brass? Isn't she normally…"

"The TRAITOR left with them! She said, 'Miss Erika, don't worry, I'll bring help once I'm certain you've calmed down'."

Erika thrashed around, kicking her legs and waving her one free arm vainly. The Screws wisely stepped out of her range until she stopped squirming. She then smiled up at them, a bit too happily to be normal.

"But, anyway, I'm glad you're here. Now will you be so kind as to DO something about this?"

Spyke and Sloan bit back their laughter and looked to their boss for answers. Samantha stood regarding the girl for a moment, arms crossed, green eyes narrowed in thought, then smiled slowly.

"Sure thing," she agreed.

"Great!" chirped Erika, pleased.

Samantha stepped forward and knelt, and Erika reached out eagerly as the other girl reached out. However, instead of taking the reporter's hand, the Screws leader bent and picked up the fallen camera, then straightened up and stepped back.

"What are you doing?" demanded the stuck girl.

"What does it look like?" Samantha smirked, before raising the camera in front of her. "Recording this moment for posterity."

"What?!"

Erika started kicking and thrashing again, screaming protests and insults, as Samantha continued to take photos. Spyke and Sloan exploded into helpless laughter, and stumbled after their boss as she circled around the helpless reporter, still snapping pictures until they were back behind her again.

"Well, I think that's enough," Samantha decided after finishing off the roll of film in the camera. "Let's go get these developed, boys."

"What about me?" wailed Erika, still kicking and flailing.

Samantha completely ignored her, and walked off with a noticeable spring in her step. Sloan slapped Erika on her rear, prompting a yelp from the girl, before following the Screw leader. Spyke, however, did not follow, instead hanging behind and just watching as Erika gave up her useless squirming again.

Suddenly he grabbed one of the reporter's legs, and Erika bit back a surprised gasp as she felt a slight tug on her foot. Was he going to actually help her…?

"…Hey Erika. Question…"

"What, Spyke?"

A faint tug on her other foot, but this time Erika felt something slip off. With a start, she realized she no longer was wearing her shoes.

"…Are you ticklish?"

Erika paled.

"BRAAAAAAA-AH-HA-HA-HA-AAAASSS-HA-HA-HA…!"


	2. Nasty Realization

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A Random Meda-Short: Usual disclaimers apply.

Main Characters: Koji, Ikki, Sumilidon and Metabee

Pairings Warning: None

Explanation: Well, think about it. If he's afraid of…

~ * Nasty Realization * ~

"Get ready to lose again, Ikki!" Koji taunted, raising his meda-watch in front of him as he and his rival faced off for the _n_th time.

"The only one losing will be you and Sumilidon!" retorted Ikki, also preparing to give orders.

"I hope Karin doesn't show up, I'd like to finish this time," commented Sumilidon lowly.

"Yeah," agreed Metabee as he posed. "I can't wait to kick your tin pet around some!"

"Feh. Has your junkbot forgotten that we're still ranked higher than you?" sneered Koji.

"GK-GK-GK! I AM NOT A JUNKBOT!" roared Metabee, pissed. "I am a HERCULES BEETLE medabot, DAMNIT!"

"Yeah!" chimed Ikki.

Koji opened his mouth to retort and continue the argument, but lapsed into silence as several facts suddenly clicked together in his brain:

(Fact One: Metabee is a Hercules Beetle medabot.)

(Fact Two: Beetles are bugs.)

(Fact Three: Koji no like bugs.)

(Fact Four: Koji really no like medabots that look like bugs.)

Koji went sheet white, and stared at Metabee as if seeing him for the first time. The KBT-type (read: BEETLE-type) glared back at him with unholy glowing green eyes. Tiny blue lines started appearing on the rich boy's forehead, and he took a shaky step backward.

"…Koji? What's wrong?" asked Ikki, concerned at his rival's uncharacteristic silence.

"Yeah, what's up with you?" agreed Metabee, stepping toward him.

(Fact Five: Koji + Bug or Bug Medabot =…)

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!"

Koji turned and sprinted out of sight, screaming at the top of his lungs the entire time, leaving Metabee, Ikki and Sumilidon staring after him and sweating.

"Okaaaaaay…" Ikki said after a while. "Does this mean we win by default?"

"Damnit, we never get to finish a robattle anymore…" griped Sumilidon.

Meanwhile, several miles away, Rokusho was indulging in some angst when he was suddenly bowled over by a fleeing, screaming Koji.

"My word! Whatever is the matter, young Koji?" the loner medabot demanded, getting back to his feet and reaching out to help the boy up.

Koji ignored the offered hand and stared at the Stag Beetle medabot, the human's purple eyes contracting into little dots.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!"

Rokusho blinked as a cloud of dust exploded around the boy, then watched as Koji streaked off into the distance, still screaming at the top of his lungs.

"…That boy needs professional help." 


	3. Relative Woes

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A Random Meda-Short: Usual disclaimers apply.

Main Characters: Spyke, Samantha and Sloan

Pairings Warning: None

Explanation: The result of seeing too many unlikely stories attempting to connect different anime characters with a certain race's lineage…

~ * Relative Woes * ~

"I'm home!"

Spyke kicked off his shoes, tossed his heavy backpack to one side, and started up the stairs toward his room. However, he stopped dead in his tracks at the sound of a very angry male voice bellowing at him from nearby.

"Boy! Come here!"

The stern tone brooked no argument. Spyke sighed and trudged toward the backyard, already knowing what was coming next. Peeking outside, he tried to delay what he knew was inevitably going to happen.

"Can't I at least go upstairs and change first? You remember what happened last time, Uncle…"

"Bah!" sneered the angry male voice. Something about the voice hinted its owner was practically eternally pissed off. "Your pathetic normal clothing can't stand up to the rigors of your training! Fine then! But hurry up!"

Thankful for the temporary reprieve, Spyke hurried to his room. Stripping off his shirt, pants and shoes, he then reached under his bed and pulled out a box. Opening it, he unfolded the uniform contained within and sighed.

"Spandex…it had to be spandex," he muttered, even as he swiftly dressed in the hated outfit.

"Boy!" the mean voice roared outside again.

Spyke sweated and sped up, hurrying to the backyard. He had a feeling this was going to be a long weekend…

The following Monday, Samantha was walking to school with Sloan, and she was _pissed_. Spyke had been missing for the entire weekend, ruining all of the plans the Screws had for their precious free time. Even now, there still wasn't any sign of their weakest member, and they weren't that far from the school building.

"…Damnit! Where the hell is Spyke?!" she finally screamed, stamping her foot.

Suddenly, a blinding flash of light erupted behind Samantha and Sloan, and they staggered back, shielding their eyes with their arms. When the brightness faded away, the two blinking Screws looked back to see Spyke standing behind them, panting hard. He smiled lopsidedly at them and gave a weak little wave, trying and failing to hide his nervousness.

"…H-hey, Boss… S-sorry I'm so late…"

"Where the hell have you been?!" Samantha demanded, rounding on the frightened boy. Noticing something distinctly odd about him, she blinked, then added in a more confused tone, "And did you dye your hair or something?"

"N-no, no!" Spyke insisted, shaking his head violently. Running a hand through his wild dark locks, he added, "See, same color as always!"

"….Hmm," Samantha glared at him suspiciously. Spyke continued to smile at her, and she squelched the nagging feeling that he was hiding something from her. With his luck, the hopeless medafighter had been beaten in a robattle again, and didn't want to face her.

"…Let's just get going, or we'll be late," she finally decided, turning and continuing on her way to school.

"…So where were you, anyway?" Sloan whispered to Spyke as they trailed behind their leader.

Spyke sighed and absently tugged on the back of his pants, concealing a definite bulge under his dark blue shirt.

"…Let's just say that I really hate it when Uncle Vegeta comes to visit," he groaned.


	4. Flipping Out

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A Random Meda-Short: Usual disclaimers apply.

Main Characters: Ikki and Karin, with the others in minor roles

Pairings Warning: Ikki/Karin fluff, mild hints of Spyke/Erika

Explanation: Fluff. Pure and simple fluff set in one possible future for the gang. And somehow it seems a bit in character for Karin to do something as odd as this…

~ * Flipping Out * ~

"…You may now kiss the bride."

Ikki Tenryou felt a huge grin spread over his face, even as he flipped his blushing bride's veil back and happily obliged with the priest's command. Nearly thirteen years after first developing a huge crush, the now world-famous medafighter was finally married to the lovely redhead Karin.

The entire evening was passing by in a happy daze, as they hurried to the next part of the grand celebration. Unlike the wedding, the party was a much more private affair, with only their closest friends attending – both humans and medabots. The only member of the press allowed in the room was Erika, and all the photos she was snapping were going into a massive scrapbook, rather than the front page.

Everything seemed to be going off without a hitch. Metabee caught the garter when Ikki launched it into the air, even though he didn't seem to understand the significance of this and went after it only thanks to his competitive spirit. He only reacted when Karin threw the bouquet and Samantha ended up with it. Neither appreciated the laughter that broke out, especially when Erika forced them to pose together for several photos, while Rintaro led the other Screws in jeering singsongs about the 'happy new couple'.

As Metabee finally snapped and tore off after Rintaro, Samantha not far behind, Koji managed to regain enough composure to walk over and congratulate the newlyweds.

"Well, Ikki, I suppose I have to hand it to you," he commented, shaking his rival's hand. "You won her heart, fair and square."

"Yeah, well," Ikki folded his other arm behind his head and grinned, "I have to admit, I was worried at first… especially when we ended up proposing at almost the exact same time!"

"I remember that," Erika chimed in, smiling at the memory. "I couldn't believe it, how you dropped to your knees at the exact same time and shouted it at the top of your lungs…"

"'Karin-will-you-marry-ME?'" mimicked Spyke, squeezing Erika gently around the shoulders where his arms were draped. He smirked, adding, "It was funny when you glared at each other afterward."

"Yeah!" Erika tittered, any hint of lingering bitterness she felt toward the redhead melting away as she absently stroked Spyke's arm. Noticing the bride nearby, she asked, "Hey, so how did you end up choosing, anyway? It must have taken the whole night, considering you didn't give any answer until we saw each other again the next morning!"

"Oh, that?" Karin smiled her charming, cute smile. "I flipped a coin."

Everyone within earshot burst out laughing, Spyke and Erika nearly collapsing against each other. Karin blinked, honestly surprised by their reaction.

"No, really!"

Her insistence only prompted more laughter from almost everyone in the room. Metabee and Samantha weren't paying any attention, as they had managed to corner Rintaro. Rintaro wasn't laughing much, either, as he was currently on the verge of being choked to death with a garter and a long pink ribbon that had once been tied around the bouquet.

The only other person not cracking up was Ikki. Instead, he was simply staring at Karin, shock evident on his once smiling face.

The rest of the day passed in a blur to him. All too soon, he and Karin were running outside the church, getting pelted with rice thrown by all his friends, and ushered into his new bride's pink limousine. As the driver pulled away and started off towards the site where their private honeymoon would take place, Karin sighed happily and leaned against her husband.

"I'm so glad the others agreed to let Metabee and Neutranurse stay with them," she murmured, shifting her head to gaze up at Ikki. "We'll be all alone…"

When Ikki did not reply, didn't even react to her gently nuzzling him, the redhead looked up with real confusion.

"…What's wrong, Ikki?"

"…Karin… I thought… thought we had something special…"

"We do, of course," insisted Karin, turning around and fixing her husband with a confused, saddened look. "Why on earth would you think differently…?"

"Because of what you said!" Ikki exploded, causing her to recoil with surprise. His dark blue eyes filled with pain, he went on, "I love you, Karin, more than anything else in the world. My biggest fear has always been that I'd lose you… to Koji, or anyone else, but especially him. I was always afraid that he had all the advantages – he saw you more, knew you longer, could offer you everything you wanted! When he… when he proposed the same time I did, I spent the whole night worrying that you'd end up choosing him."

"…Ikki…I didn't…"

"You don't know how wonderful I felt when you looked me in the eyes and told me I was the one you'd chosen. I can't even describe how it felt… it was like nothing else in the world mattered, other than the fact that I finally had the woman I loved." Ikki looked down at his lap, at the fists he was clenching helplessly. "And to find out it was all a matter of chance…"

"Ikki…" Karin repeated, gently brushing her fingers against her husband's cheek. They came back wet, and she realized with a start that he was crying. "Ikki, please look at me."

Shaking, trembling with emotion, Ikki nevertheless obliged. Karin continued to caress his face with her slender fingers, reaching out with her other hand and keeping his misty eyes level with hers.

"I said that I flipped a coin to decide. But, Ikki…" she smiled winningly, a faint blush spreading over her pearly cheeks, "I never did mention whose name actually won."

Ikki blinked, then slowly a shaky smile spread over his face as he slowly began to comprehend what she went. Karin leaned forward, hands slipping from his cheeks to his shoulders, then twining her arms around his back.

"Oh, Ikki," she whispered in her husband's ear. "When I saw how the coin landed, I just knew I couldn't really become Mrs. Karin Karakuchi… I really do prefer… Mrs. Karin Tenryou…"

The two melted into a blissful kiss, sinking down until the plush seats of the limousine hid them from view, while outside the scenery continued to fly by unnoticed.


	5. Hardly Fair

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A Random Meda-Short: Usual disclaimers apply.

Main Characters: Metabee, Brass, Erika and Ikki

Pairings Warning: Metabee/Brass, possibly Erika/Ikki

Explanation: Rigged carnival games suck. That's all I think really needs to be said…

~ * Hardly Fair * ~

Brass looked around in awe at the bright, colorful scenery, the whimsical and delightful sights that always filled the carnival. Everything was so exciting---! She didn't even care anymore that Erika had dragged Ikki off somewhere again, causing her to lose sight of her partner for the time being.

Besides, she still had Metabee with her, so she felt perfectly safe. What could happen as long as they stayed together…?

"Oh, Metabee, look!" she cried in delight, pointing over at a booth nearby. "Look at all the prizes you can win…!"

"Hmm?"

Metabee followed her over and studied the various items on display. Huge stuffed animals gazed back at him with bright, glassy eyes, just a little bit unnervingly. Not that it bothered Metabee, of course… nope, not at all.

Besides, he was much more interested in the fact that there were even a few meda-parts on display, prizes meant for the very best players. Most were arms with various types of weapons, but there were a few sets of legs as well.

One was particularly eye-catching, in fact: a set very obviously meant for a female medabot, as it had a long, fancy violet and blue skirt with an intricate pattern of lacy-winged butterflies on it. Very pretty, probably meant more for show purposes than an actual robattle.

Judging from the way Brass was staring at it with big, wonder-filled rose eyes, however, that mattered little to the Sailor-Multi.

Metabee noticed the man in charge of the booth eyeing Brass, and quickly made a decision.

"Yo, what do I gotta do to win that thing for her?" he asked, jerking a thumb over at the legs.

The man grinned toothily, sensing he'd managed to reel another sucker in with his attractive bait.

"Well, meda-boy, this here's a shooting gallery," he explained, waving a grimy hand toward the rows of plastic ducks behind him. "Ten yen lets you try your luck. Hit all the duckies, and it's yours."

"Fine then," Metabee handed the guy his payment, bright green eyes gleaming confidently. "Start it up."

The man's grin grew wider, and he pressed a button underneath the counter. Instantly, the ducks jerked to life, and began their jerky movement over their track, the stilted sound of fake quacking starting up.

"Kiss your beaks goodbye," taunted Metabee, as he leveled his gun at the ducks and started firing.

"…Hey, wait…!"

The man's protest came too late, as Metabee proceeded to pick off each of the plastic ducky targets with ease, in rapid succession. In almost no time, all of the targets were flat on their backs, shot down.

"Dude… I rock. Now give the lady her prize," Metabee said coolly, as behind him Brass beamed with surprised delight.

The greasy guy sweated. The legs were his most valuable lure, one of the prizes he used to bring in lots of hopefuls who never were able to claim it. To lose them to this medabot so easily was unthinkable…!

Covertly, he pressed another button under the counter, and grinned slyly as one of the shot-down ducks popped back up.

"Ooh, too bad, so close," he mocked, a cocky, self-sure smirk on his face. "Looks like it didn't take."

"What!?"

Metabee glared up at him with blazing green eyes. Too late, the man realized he'd just made a horrible mistake…

Moments later, a rather large explosion shook the entire park. Ikki and Erika immediately stopped bickering about what ride they'd go on next and ran towards where the blast had been – Erika because she wanted the story, Ikki because he knew Metabee had to be involved somehow.

Neither was surprised when they found Metabee and Brass walking away from a smoking crater. What was a little surprising to them was the fact that Brass was carrying a neatly wrapped parcel containing a certain leg meda-part.

"Miss Erika, do you like this meda-part? Metabee won it for me," Brass said shyly, a faint blush springing to her metallic cheeks.

"Metabee won that for you?" Erika cried in delight, then leveled a glare at Ikki. "Ikki, win me something!"

"…Um…"

"Consider it already done, 'Rika," Metabee soothed, pulling out a huge plush bunny rabbit and handing it to the astonished, but pleased reporter.

"…Metabee, where did you get that?" asked a sweating Ikki, gaping at the towering plushie.

"Oh, this? Consider it a bit of a bonus prize… an apology, if you want."

"…What?" Ikki stared at his medabot suspiciously.

"Ikki, will you carry this for me?" Erika insisted, shoving the plush toy into Ikki's arms before he could protest. "Thanks!"

"Mmmphh!"

The four walked away, or staggered away in Ikki's case, while behind them, the smoke cleared to reveal a very charred booth, an ash-covered and shell-shocked man, and a row of ducky targets… all of them knocked down.


	6. Kabuto Construction

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A Random Meda-Short: Usual disclaimers apply.

Main Characters: Ikki, Metabee, Spyke and Cyandog

Pairings Warning: Eh… I suppose one thing at the end might possibly be taken as Ikki/Spyke, but it's not really meant that way… strictly platonic here, sorry

Explanation: Just an idea I got after seeing something on the shelves one day…

~ * Kabuto Construction * ~

Ikki was confused and annoyed. Metabee was missing again, and for the life of him, the boy couldn't figure out why. They hadn't gotten into any fights – today, at least, though that may have been in part due to the fact that the KBT-type was gone. Their training had been going well, and Metabee hadn't voiced any major complaints about it. They'd managed to win a few intense robattles lately, so it wasn't like he had any reason to worry about their ranking slipping…

Ikki had already checked several of the KBT-type's normal sulking places, and come up with nothing. Even now, as he ran through the park to continue his fruitless search, his annoyance was starting to become panic: what if something had happened to him? What if the Rubberobos had attacked? What if his rare medal had been stolen? What if…

"Would you be careful with that?!?"

…He was nearby.

Ikki stopped short and looked around, listening intently for the sound of his medabot's voice. It had definitely come from close by. After a few seconds, he spotted a shack and walked toward it.

"Sorry…"

Ikki blinked: that was Spyke's voice. But what in the world was the weakest member of the Screws doing with Metabee?

He started to knock, then thought better of it and pressed his ear to the wall instead. He had a feeling these two were up to something, and rather than bust in, it seemed like a better idea to try and figure out just what was going on…

"For crying out loud, just try not and mess this up," Metabee muttered inside. "The only reason I came to you guys for help with this was because I knew I could trust you to keep it secret. Not like Erika, who'd blab all over the papers about it…"

"I'm happy you feel that way, Master." That was Cyandog, always the agreeable one, always eager to be of service. "I'm honored that you would choose to entrust us with such a task, aren't you, Boss?"

"Yeah, yeah… Where's that piece…?"  


"Which piece?" This was accompanied by the sound of rustling paper, and several small objects clattering on the floor.

"Oh, great, now everything's spilled. Now it's going to take forever to find it…"

More rustling, and shuffling as they searched for the elusive piece. Ikki leaned in closer, straining to hear.

Snap.

A tense pause.

"…I found it," whimpered Cyandog.

"Um… I hope that wasn't important," Spyke's voice piped meekly.

"Nah… Looks like it's one of those internal parts. If it doesn't show up on the outside, then Ikki'll never notice."

"Are you sure about that, Master? It looks like now your leg won't bend quite so far…"

"I said it's fine! If it turns out not to work, maybe I can get Henry to fix it later…"

"But what about…"

Snap.

"…Aw, dammit!"

"Wow, Master, I never thought your armor would be so… cheap."

"Shut up! If you weren't such klutzes…"

"But, Metabee, you're the one that broke that piece," pointed out Spyke.

Snap.

"…And that one."

"Wow, right in half. How are we gonna fix that?"

"No problem, it's no problem. Hand me that roll of duct tape, will you…?"

"Here, catch."

Snap-crack-pop.

"Gk-gk-gk-GK-GK-GKKK!"

"…Uh-oh."

"Spyke, why the HELL did you throw that?"

"I thought you'd catch it! You're supposed to have great reflexes and all that…"

"Not when you're aiming right at my head!!"

"Don't worry, Master, maybe Ikki won't notice."

"You SNAPPED my ANTENNAE right off! I get the feeling he'll notice!"

Outside, Ikki nearly face-faulted when he heard that.

"I can fix it, I can fix it! Where's the glue again?"

A pause, filled only with sounds of shuffling and frantic movement.

"…There, it's fixed!"

"Wait a sec… You stuck it in the wrong way!"

"…Whoops. My bad."

"It's okay, Master, I'm sure anyone could make the same mistake."

"Gk-gk-gk! Easy for you to say! You're not the one whose HEAD ORNAMENT just got SUPER-GULED on UPSIDE-DOWN!"

"…Maybe Ikki won't notice that?"

"Gk-gk-gk-gk--! If he didn't notice, I'd have to kill him for neglect!"

"Let me try to fix it! Cyandog, where are the pliers?"

Snap-spring.

"Whoops, there it went again… Now where'd that go…?"

"Boss, please don't tell me you lost Master's medal. Again."

Ikki had heard more than enough. Desperately, he tugged on the door and flung it open, busting into the clubhouse in an absolute fury.

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING TO MY MEDABOT?!"

Spyke's head popped up at once, and the wild-haired Screw stared at Ikki with a mixture of shock and sheepish-ness in his expression. Behind him, Cyandog recoiled at the sheer anger in the pony-tailed medafighter's dark blue eyes.

"What the hell did you do to Metabee?!" demanded Ikki, glaring.

"Geez, Ikki, lighten up!" Metabee commented, and Ikki swiveled around to spot his medabot sitting on a box near the doorway – perfectly fine and unharmed, though his green eyes were narrowed in annoyance. "Can't some guys have some alone time to work on a project?"

"A…project?" Ikki asked slowly, as his relief and confusion at seeing the KBT-type in one piece grew.

"It doesn't matter, anyway." Spyke stood up, holding something in both hands and looking downcast. "It wasn't turning out that great anyway…"

He held out his prize for the stunned Ikki to gape at: an unfinished, six-inch tall model of Metabee in rather battered condition. The antennae were crooked and upside-down, the feet were falling apart, the plastic armor wasn't snapped together perfectly…

"Metabee saw it in a store, and wanted to give you a completed version," explained Spyke, head hanging in defeat. "He wanted Cyandog and me to help him put it together, since the parts kept snapping when he tried to force them in place, but…"

He was cut off when Ikki suddenly lunged forward and hugged the taller boy, babbling in relief. Words couldn't express better than actions how wonderful it felt for Ikki to find his suspicions were completely off base.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you…"

"Um…Ikki? I like you too, but I can't… breathe…"

Cyandog and Metabee stared at them, then looked at each other. After an awkward pause between the two medabots, the DOG-type spoke up.

"Do you think we should try the Rokusho model next…?"


	7. Swede and Sour Remix

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A Random Meda-Short: Usual disclaimers apply.

Main Characters: Erika, Samantha, Karin, Spyke, Ikki, Koji, Sloan, Metabee, Sumilidon, Totalizer, Neutranurse, Krosserdog, and Team Sweden

Pairings Warning: None

Explanation: How I originally thought the episode 'Swede and Sour' might end. Naturally, it's very helpful if you've seen the original episode before reading this.

~ * Swede and Sour Remix * ~

Annika, the eldest member of the famous Team Sweden, felt beads of perspiration forming on her usually clear forehead. For the first time in practically her entire career as a member of the well-known female group, she was losing a robattle. Badly.

It didn't make any sense. The strategy had never failed them like this before! Especially when Team Japan had seemed so receptive at first…

Strictly speaking, the strategy that the girls used to win all their fights was hardly fair – but then again, to them, all was fair in love, war and robattle. By using their charms and pretty looks, they beguiled all the male members of the opposing team into willingly throwing the match. Afterwards, of course, they had no use for the fools, and left them to pick up the pieces of their shattered hearts while they moved on to their next victims.

It was such a simple, easy plan. Yet it seemed that it was suddenly failing them.

Though Ikki Tenryou, Koji Karakuchi, and Space Medafighter X had obviously enjoyed their time with the girls of Sweden, fawning over them the entire time they were together, now that they were in the ring, everything suddenly changed. The Japanese Team had promised constantly to go easy on them, but for some reason, that promise hadn't carried through.

In fact, their medabots were attacking with a vengeance, tearing through their poor partners mercilessly.

Even as Annika stared, wine-colored eyes filled with shock, Siri shrieked in terror as Metabee's Seeker Missiles sent her Sailormate flying backwards. Sailormate echoed her master's scream with one of her own, a cry abruptly cut short as Sumilidon leapt behind the falling SLR-type and swept his Flexorsword over her back.

Even as Sailormate toppled to the ground, the Saber-tooth Tiger medabot swung around to face a sweating Fossilkat. Seeing her own partner in mortal peril, Margareta tore her tear-blurred gaze away from the scene and looked desperately at the boy she thought she'd had wrapped round her little finger.

"Koji, please!" she begged, her dimpled cheeks flushed red with fear. "I thought you loved me! Why are you letting Sumilly-chan hurt Fossilkat so…?"

The dark-haired boy didn't even so much as glance over at the pleading blonde. His arms were crossed triumphantly over his chest; his head was bowed slightly so that his bangs shadowed his face. Yet all three of the girls could clearly see the cruel, self-satisfied smirk that twisted his lips.

"Consider this my way of breaking up with you," he hissed lowly, a brief chuckle following his words. "I don't appreciate being used the way you tried to play me…"

"That's right," chimed in Ikki, his head held high and eyes narrowed into dark slits as he glared at an equally stunned Siri. "Maybe now you'll know better than to abuse the hearts of all the guys you meet! Robattling takes a lot more than a pretty face and a cute smile, after all!"

"Now, if you would please be so kind as to just surrender, it could save us all a lot of time," added Space Medafighter X politely.

"No way!" snarled Koji and Ikki back at their partner at the same time. "We're enjoying this way too much!"

Space Medafighter X recoiled, sweating a bit, and Annika raised one delicate eyebrow in surprise. Ikki and Koji had certainly changed dramatically from the last time they saw each other… Come to think of it, Space Medafighter X seemed a bit different as well. A bit… slimmer than she recalled, and even less assertive…

Before she had much time to think about it, however, Hopstar's agonized shout forced her attention back to the robattle.

"Hopstar!" she shouted as the BNY-type was knocked backward by the force of Sailormate and Fossilkat being flung into her.

Sweating, knowing the end was nearly upon her, Annika tried one last time to reassert the control she thought she'd had over Space Medafighter X. She stared directly at the masked human, wine-colored eyes wide and injured, lips trembling slightly as she silently begged for mercy, for a chance to get up and win this robattle…

Then her eyes suddenly widened as they fell upon the third medabot in the team. Metabee and Sumilidon were racing forward to deliver the finishing blows together, but the last remained standing back, giving the Swedish leader a good look at… her.

(That's not Totalizer… That's not the medabot belonging to the boy I seduced! But then…)

But before she could do anything more, Hopstar, Fossilkat, and Sailormate had their medals knocked out almost simultaneously.

"Function ceased! The winner is… Team Japan!"

All Annika could do was join her teammates in tears as everything they ever worked for vanished in that instant, along with the medals of their medabots.

Some time later, Metabee walked in front of the rest of Team Japan, in very high spirits. Despite things looking grim for a while, once again it had turned out fine, thanks to luck, skill and a great battle plan.

"So, how do you feel," his green eyes flashed mischievously as he went on, "Ikki, Koji and Space Medafighter X?"

"Great!" the kid called Ikki declared with a grin, reaching up and undoing their ponytail, allowing short, dark chocolate locks to fall back into place. "That was extremely satisfying, you know…"

"Hell yeah," agreed the child called Koji, fluffing out long auburn hair as they added, "But I'm glad to get that thing off my head. I was sweating so bad underneath that thing."

"Better take a shower, then," the one referred to as Space Medafighter X suggested, taking over the golden mask and smiling cutely.

"Don't worry, I plan to. …Oh… and good job… 'Sumilly-chan'."

"Please, don't call me that," groaned the STG-type. "I really don't want to have to hurt you after you helped out like that."

"Oh, but it's such a cute nickname!" trilled Space Medafighter X's medabot, clasping her hands in front of her. "Sumilly-chan…"

"Oh! Don't you think we should tell Spyke and the others that we've won?" noted the masked medafighter.

"Sure, whatever," the kid formally known as Ikki replied. Walking over to Team Japan's waiting room, they rapped on the door and called, "Spyke, it's over."

The door cracked open, and two heads popped out: one belonging to Spyke, the other to his medabot Krosserdog.

"Did you win?" he asked.

"Of course! What do you take us for?" demanded the child called Koji, smirking.

Spyke grinned widely, eyes lighting up with delight at the good news.

"I never doubted you for a second, Boss! I knew your new plan would work!"

"Can we let them out now?" queried the DOG-type beside the boy. "They woke up a few minutes ago, and haven't calmed down since…"

"All right, all right…"

Spyke let the members of Team Japan into the room, shutting the door behind them. Looking down at the bound and gagged trio of furiously struggling boys in front of them, Erika and Samantha crossed their arms over their chests and smirked. Karin just shook her head and bowed in apology to them.

"I'm really sorry about all this," she said, smiling faintly. "But we couldn't let poor Metabee and Sumilly-chan down… and I just couldn't fight with Totalizer!"

"That's all right," muttered the TOT-type medabot from where he stood next to his sweating, gagged medafighter. "Didn't feel much like losing my medal, anyway…"

"One day, you'll understand this was all for the best, you guys," Erika said with a wink, absently tugging on her bright red shirt's huge collar.

"Yeah, OUR best," added Metabee, glaring at Ikki where the boy sat tied to a chair with tears waterfalling down his cheeks.

"Mmmpphhh…"


	8. Ikki Gets Ruffled

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A Random Meda-Short: Usual disclaimers apply.

Main Characters: Spyke, Erika, Ikki, Karin, Koji, Samantha, Brass, Cyandog, Peppercat, Metabee, and Henry

Pairings Warning: Possibly Ikki/Erika or Ikki/Spyke, depending on… well, you'll see

Explanation: With Halloween coming up, I wanted to do something playing around with costumes. This was the first concept that hit me: cosplay coordination. The roles came quickly, and this ficlet wrote itself. I bet with a little time, I could come up with more of these, but for now, this one stands on its own.

~ * Cos-Playing Around: Ikki Gets Ruffled * ~

"I've got to hand it to you for once: This was a great idea, Spyke!" Erika commented, smiling brightly at the wild-haired boy.

"It was a stupid idea," griped Ikki.

"It was a wonderful idea!" trilled Karin, spinning in place once and making her costume's long skirt flutter.

"Yeah, Karin's right, a stupendous idea," Koji agreed quickly, smirking. "One worthy of me, almost."

"Thanks, guys," Spyke beamed at the praise. "I'm go happy so many of you agreed to go along with this. Especially you, Boss…"

"Whatever," sniffed Samantha, looking away. She couldn't completely hide her pleased grin as she glanced down at her costume and added, "I like this, though. You actually managed to match my personality."

"Yeah, you're a real firebrand," Erika joked.

"I bet you're just glad yours gives you an excuse to lug that camera inside," sniped Samantha, narrowing her turquoise eyes at the girl, yet still smiling faintly.

"You're right, Miss Erika was typecast," Brass giggled, rose eyes glowing.

"I like your costume, Brass," Cyandog piped, "and look! We match!"

"No, not really," pointed out the Sailor-Multi. "You're just bubbly, while I'm supposed to be more flowing and tranquil… I think."

"At least you don't have to wear these pants," Peppercat noted, tugging on the getup she had on. "I know it's supposed to be a compliment that I got this, but still…"

"Arabian Nights chic suits you," Cyandog commented.

"Well, at least none of you has to have these stupid little wings strapped to your back!" griped Metabee, fuming as he flexed his shoulders and 'flapped' said appendages for emphasis.

"Oh, but they look so cute on you, Meta-chan!" teased Erika, aiming her camera at the upset KBT-type.

"I think it's so cute," agreed Karin, nodding so that both her pigtails bobbed. "I think they're all so cute…"

"Not really the sort of thing you'd expect guys to be dressing up for," Koji noted, absently pressing the glasses he was wearing as part of his costume back into place. "But at least I got one I liked… and one that didn't involve me wearing just outlandish getups like the rest of you."

"Actually, I'm kind of surprised you took him, Koji," pointed out Henry, stretching out so that the flowing robes of his own costume ruffled. "From what I've seen of the series, I expected you to take Spyke's role…"

"No! I came up with the idea, I wanted this one!" howled Spyke, looking very upset.

"Henry, you've watched a lot of this series?" asked Karin, blinking.

Henry sweated and stammered, "No, no! …Well, I've seen a little bit. Enough to know who's who."

"Then enlighten us, oh all-knowing Henry," Samantha challenged, crossing her arms.

"Well, from what I've picked up, Ikki's character is the hero of the series, and spends all their time hunting these magical creatures that escaped thanks to a little screw-up they made. Metabee's Ikki's guardian, protector, mentor and constant companion, while Erika's the best friend who's always by their side, filming all their adventurers with her trusty camcorder and supporting them no matter what."

"Like Brass said, typecasting," interjected Erika, smiling brightly.

"Then later, Spyke comes in and also tries to find the same magical creatures, because he thinks he's got a claim of his own that trumps Ikki's… but they eventually go from rivals to allies to friends and then…"

"To what?" Cyandog prompted as Henry trailed off, noticing that both he and Spyke were blushing lightly.

"…Then Karin comes in – she's Spyke's fiancée and another rival for Ikki, although she's not as skilled with magic as them."

"Karin's fiancée?!" Koji wailed. "Now I think I did get the wrong part!"

"Too late now," commented Samantha lightly, shaking her head and smirking.

"Anyway, working together, they manage to capture all the creatures, which include powerful beings like Brass, Cyandog, Peppercat, and Samantha. Then, later on, Koji appears with a secret of his own connected to the beings, and an old friend of Ikki's turns out to have this alternate identity… which just happens to be me," Henry finished.

"Ha! If it's supposed to be a big important secret, why did you pick that one, Henry?" Erika laughed. "I mean, it's not like you could hide anything interesting!"

Henry laughed nervously along with the others, sweating. Thinking it best to change the subject as soon as possible, he looked over at Ikki.

"What's wrong with you, anyway, Ikki?" he asked, smiling. "I mean, you should be happy! You're the star!"

"Yeah, aren't you happy, Ikki?" echoed Spyke, turning and looking at the other boy in concern. "I mean, I picked out all the costumes as best I could and all… Don't you like…"

"Don't you like yours, Ikki?" Erika teased. "After Spyke went through all this trouble, the least you could do is say something to him…"

"I just want to know…" Ikki whirled on Spyke, waved his pink baton in the air threateningly, and tugged on the rippling pink ruffles of his huge skirt as he shouted, "WHY did you have to pick out the most girly dress in Card Captor Sakura's entire freaking wardrobe?!"

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In case you couldn't get all that, the exact roles were: Ikki as Sakura, Erika as Tomoyo, Spyke as Syaoran, Metabee as Kero, Karin as Mei Ling, Koji as Eriol, Samantha as the Fiery Card, Brass as the Watery Card, Krosserdog as the Bubbles Card, Peppercat as the Power Card, and Henry as Yukiko in Guardian Form.


End file.
